Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Irish playwright Conor McPherson has adapted Anton Chekhov’s 1897 drama, and the result is a conversational English version without any of the starchiness that attaches to the more self-consciously “classical” translations.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 19, 2025

Half are charred until smoky and sweet, and the rest are left raw, lending it all a fresh, sharp, green note that livens up the starchiness.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 4, 2022

But Ali, done up with Igor Stravinsky’s stern glasses and spindly mustache, is majestic, with a genteel starchiness that soon reveals tragic layers.

From Slate • Nov. 14, 2018

Take a risk on a cross-cultural concoction, like the ube ice cream at Munch, a purple yam confection whose sweet starchiness benefits from a drizzle of Nutella.

From Washington Post • Dec. 20, 2017

Even Petronella's soft green gown seemed made of some mystical stuff which had nothing in common with the cool white or blue starchiness of the uniforms of nurses.

From The Gay Cockade by Bailey, Temple